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From Connection to Collective Action: CAMP Alumni Serve Communities Nationwide

By: Fernando Alejandro C. Ligot and Rozelle Francesca K. Bentulan

In line with the University’s commitment to public service, the University of the Philippines Manila College of Allied Medical Professions (UP CAMP), together with the UP CAMP Alumni Association (UP CAMPAA), held a nationwide TheraFree event throughout November 2025. The initiative marked UP CAMP’s 63rd foundation anniversary and the 60th anniversary of UP CAMPAA.

Volunteers and beneficiary families gather during the TheraFree event organized under the Academy for Able Children with Exceptionalities, Inc., Batangas.

TheraFree is an initiative of UP CAMPAA that offers free physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech pathology assessments and interventions for individuals with mobility, functional, and communication needs. These activities bring together students, faculty, alumni, and partner organizations and therapy centers to extend rehabilitation services to communities with limited access to care.

 

 

For the nationwide TheraFree, 25 alumni-owned therapy centers and clinics across the country participated: five in Northern Luzon, six in Southern Luzon, two in Mindanao, and 12 in the National Capital Region. Together, alumni provided free screening, assessment, therapy, and parent education to more than 300 children and adults with disabilities.

A faculty volunteer and student volunteer from UP CAMP conducting a screening with a learner with a disability from P. Gomez Elementary School.

The initiative demonstrated the reach and strength of the CAMP community, with alumni from different parts of the country coming together to share their expertise and make rehabilitation services more accessible to Filipinos who may otherwise have limited access. 

 

The collaborative spirit of the celebration was also evident in CAMP’s work with the Department of Education Manila and the local school community. On November 9, alumni, faculty, and student volunteers joined CAMP and its Clinic for Therapy Services in screening 47 learners from P. Gomez Elementary School to support the school’s Child Find system and inclusive education initiatives.

A therapist from SJL Therapy Center, La Union, providing free screening and home instructions to the family of a child with a disability.

More than an alumni celebration, Nationwide TheraFree reflects the enduring spirit of service nurtured at UP CAMP. It demonstrates how an alumni community can remain connected to its university and to one another, and transform that connection into collective action for the Filipino people. Following the success of the 2025 initiative, CAMP plans to make Nationwide TheraFree an annual activity in partnership with UP CAMPAA and its service-spirited alumni, continuing CAMP’s tradition of service to the Filipino people.

A therapist assessing the skills and abilities of a young child with a disability.
Carillon is published by the University of the Philippines Office of Alumni Relations